Delivering a major road scheme will be in the hands of Kirklees Council, if their senior councillors agree.
The £53.5 million A62 to Cooper Bridge Corridor Improvement Scheme spans the border of Calderdale and Kirklees councils.
Cooper Bridge is a consideration for Calderdale Council’s Brighouse ward.
Calderdale Council Cabinet members agreed to delegate powers to deliver the scheme to Kirklees Council.
Kirklees’ own Cabinet councillors will also have to agree to accept the powers to get the scheme under way.
The scheme aims to cut congestion, improve air quality, enhance safety, boost public transport and ultimately support economic and housing growth.
The route is known to be heavily congested at peak times and the proposals include a mixture of junction redesign, road widening, and active‑travel upgrades, including for cyclists and pedestrians to improve the situation, the Calderdale councillors were told.
Calderdale Council Cabinet member for Resources, Coun Silvia Dacre (Lab, Todmorden) said the programme was unusual in that it straddled the two administrative boundaries but the majority of it was actually in Kirklees.
“I’d just like to reassure that we will continue to be consulted throughout the programme.
“This decision will avoid duplication, unnecessary costs and enable a focus of the team on delivery of this project,” she said.
Delegating Calderdale’s powers to Kirklees made sense, said Leader of the Council, Coun Jane Scullion (Lab, Luddenden Foot).
“It seems an eminently sensible tidy way of doing things, given the relative proportions of areas belonging to Calderdale and Kirklees,” she said.
Road layouts will change, with three options under consideration as of late 2024, including a modernised roundabout, a larger, one‑way circulatory system intended to handle heavier vehicle movements, and a signal-controlled T‑junction that would significantly alter the junction.
West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) is the prime funder through the West Yorkshire Plus Transport Fund.
The existing A62/A644 Cooper Bridge junction comprises a signalled three-armed roundabout connecting the A62 Cooper Bridge Road (southern arm), the A644 Wakefield Road (western arm) and the A62 Leeds Road (eastern arm).
The scheme is at the Outline Business Case (OBC) stage at WYCA.
